SaaStr 768: Approaching Half a Million Customers: How to Win in SMB with BILL CEO and Founder René Lacerte
SaaStr 768: Approaching Half a Million Customers: How to Win in SMB with BILL CEO and Founder René Lacerte
Join our in-depth exploration of Bill.com's remarkable evolution, from BILL CEO and Founder René Lacerte and SaaStr CEO and founder Jason Lemkin. Tune in as they share how BILL has reached half a million customers and $1.3B in revenue.
Together, Jason and René discuss:
How to sell to multiple stakeholders as a SaaS platform
Going long and BILL's 20+ year journey to $1B
Creating a Moat
How to create product stickiness
The impact of artificial intelligence on BILL
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SaaStr hosts the largest SaaS community events on the planet.
Hey everybody - thanks to the 10,000 of you who came out to SaaStr Annual. We had a blast and big news -- we'll be back in MAY of 2025. That's right, the SaaStr Annual will be a bit earlier next year, May 13-15 2025. We'll still be back in the same venue, in the SF bay area at the 40+ acre sprawling san mateo county events center. Grab your tickets at saastrannual.com with code jason50 for an extra discount on our very best pricing.
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This episode is sponsored by: remote.com
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This episode is sponsored by: Anrok
A question for SaaS finance leaders, do you know where your customers are? Anrok tracks where your sales are creating exposure, and automates tax calculation and filing worldwide. Built for high-growth software companies, Anrok protects your revenue and saves you time. Visit anrok.com/saastr to learn more.
#163 CEO Bill, René Lacerte: Hourglass Leadership
Guest: René Lacerte, CEO of Bill
René Lacerte co-founded the online payroll firm PayCycle in 1999, and led it for six years until he was asked by the board to step down. Today, with 17 years as the CEO of Bill under his belt, he’s able to look back on that time with clearer eyes. “The title on my card is ‘CEO and Founder,’” he says. “At Paycycle, it was ‘Co-Founder and CEO.’” The order matters, because once you’ve become a founder or co-founder, you are one no matter what — and in hindsight, René believes he failed to keep up with how PayCycle was changing. “My job as a CEO, it changes every freaking day,” he says of Bill. “We’ve 10x’d in four years. My job today has far more responsibilities and requirements than it had four years ago. So how do you get ready for that?”
In this episode, René and Joubin discuss Silicon Valley OGs, the office environment, taking care of yourself, memorizing acronyms, Christmas presents, 11-finger jazz, intentionality and spontaneity, ordering your job titles, problem-solving at night, understanding insecurities, and measuring success.
In this episode, we cover:
Why René did not want a corner office (02:22)
The weight of being CEO (04:40)
Dinner with the kids (08:50)
Prioritizing, energy, and fitness (11:05)
Music and René’s parents (17:31)
His father and pride (23:13)
Empathy for small businesses (28:00)
Family values (32:46)
“Legacy, I don’t care about that” (36:15)
Stepping down from PayCycle (41:16)
Starting Bill (46:58)
Leading in hyper-growth (50:10)
The early years (53:07)
Conventional wisdom (56:08)
Who Bill is hiring and what “grit” means to René (01:01:02)
Links:
Connect with RenéLinkedIn
Connect with JoubinTwitter
LinkedIn
Email: grit@kleinerperkins.com
Learn more about Kleiner Perkins
This episode was edited by Eric Johnson from LightningPod.fm
SaaStr 483: The $26B SaaS SMB Leader, Bill.com with René Lacerte, CEO of Bill.com and SaaStr CEO, Jason Lemkin
In this episode of the SaaStr podcast, SaaStr CEO and Founder, Jason Lemkin, sits down will Bill.com CEO, René Lacerte. Bill.com has become an SMB powerhouse, with 120,000+ customers and a stunning $25B+ market cap. All while selling at a $2k ACV!
Video + blog post: https://www.saastr.com/10-learnings-from-rene-lacerte-ceo-of-bill-com/
Sponsors:
https://terminus.com/
https://checkr.com/